1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to a utensil rack for use with a household dishwasher and a utensil basket supported by the utensil rack. In one aspect, the invention relates to a utensil rack adapted to hold a utensil basket in multiple vertical positions. In another of its aspects, the invention relates to a utensil rack having multiple basket elements that are complementary to form a whole basket. In yet another of its aspects, the invention relates to a utensil rack mounted to the dishwasher by a pair of slides having a closure member to prevent undesired removal of the utensil rack from the slides.
2. Description of the Related Art
Automatic dishwashers are well known, especially those for use in household environments. A typical automatic dishwasher comprises a cabinet that defines a washing chamber, which is accessible through a moveable door. Typically, an upper and a lower rack for holding utensils to be cleaned are provided within the washing chamber. A silverware basket is also usually provided and normally mounts to the lower rack. The upper and lower racks are normally spaced so that larger utensils can be positioned in the lower rack and smaller utensils in the upper rack. Both the upper and lower racks are slidably mounted within the washing chamber in such a manner that at least a major portion of the racks can be slid substantially beyond the washing chamber to ease the loading of the racks.
The types of utensils placed in an automatic dishwasher can vary greatly in size. Some utensils are very large, such as soup pots and roasting pans, other utensils are relatively small, such as silverware, serving spoons, and spatulas. The racks must also accommodate the traditional utensils of plates, glasses, saucer plates, mugs, etc. Since the utensil composition can vary greatly from load to load, contemporary automatic dishwashers must be configured or easily adaptable to accommodate these various size utensils to maximize the number of utensils washed during a given load. The maximization of the number of utensils in each load is a great convenience for the user and also reduces energy and water consumption.
The shapes of some utensils are such that they can reduce the effective holding capacity of the automatic dishwasher, and thereby increase the need for multiple loads, resulting in an inefficient use of resources. An example of such a utensil is any utensil having a long and slender profile, such as a wooden spoon, a spatula, a ladle, etc. Often times, the length of these utensils makes it impossible for them to stand up within the silverware basket because the utensil will contact the other rack. To wash these types of utensils, it is necessary to lay them down in either the upper or lower racks where they often extend across a substantial portion of the rack floor. Unfortunately their slender profile leaves quite a significant volume of rack space above such a utensil. Since for best cleaning it is not desirable to place other items on top of the elongated utensils, the space above the elongated utensils is not often used, thereby effectively reducing the capacity of the given load. The laid down slender profile utensils are also more likely than large profile utensils to fall through the spaced between the intersecting ribs forming the bottom of the racks, where the slender profile utensils can interfere with the rotating spray arms and other structures of the dishwasher.
Smaller utensils with a slender profile, such as table knives, spoons, and forks, can also take up more space than is warranted if they are placed on one of the racks. This is why they are commonly positioned upright in the silverware basket. Usually, the height of the silverware basket is about half the length or less of these smaller utensils. As a result, the smaller utensils tend to lean against the edges of the silverware basket and against one another, especially when the utensils are crowded in silverware basket, which can detrimentally affect the ability of the dishwasher to clean the utensils, especially at the interface of the utensils with the basket or other utensils.
Thus, it is desirable to have an automatic dishwasher that can efficiently accommodate all shapes and sizes of utensils for effective cleaning thereof without dramatically sacrificing overall capacity.
Another problem associated with conventional dishwasher racks relates to the slides that mount the racks to the side walls of the dishwasher cabinet. Usually, the racks include wheels or similar devices mounted to the sides thereof, and the wheels ride within a slide movably mounted to the cabinet. To remove the rack from the dishwasher, the user pulls the rack out of the wash chamber by sliding the wheel toward the end of the slide and, once the rack reaches the end of the slide, removes the wheels from the slide, usually by slightly lifting the rack to lift the wheel over a detent in the slide while continuing to pull. However, with such a configuration, it is easy for the user to accidentally pull the wheel over the detent while pulling the rack out of the wash chamber in a normal fashion and thereby unintentionally remove the rack from the slide. It is therefore desirable to have an automatic dishwasher with a slide that prevents undesired removal of the rack therefrom.